CHOCOLATE STOUT CAKE

PREP + COOK TIME 1 HOUR 15 MINUTES (+ COOLING) SERVES 10

Stout and chocolate have a natural affinity with each other. Indeed, some stouts are termed “chocolate stout” as they exhibit a chocolate flavour due to a dark style of roasted malt that’s used to make them. This cake has a lovely lightly aerated crumb that perfectly holds the intense mildly bitter chocolate stout syrup.

1 tablespoon cocoa powder, to dust

2 cups (500ml) stout

80g dark chocolate, chopped coarsely

185g butter, softened

1¼ cups (275g) firmly packed dark

brown sugar

3 eggs

2 cups (300g) self−raising flour

2 tablespoons cocoa powder, extra

½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon cider vinegar

STOUT SYRUP

1 cup (250ml) stout

1½ cups (330g) caster sugar

¼ cup (25g) cocoa powder

½ cup (125ml) water

1 Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan. Grease a 21cm kugelhopf cake pan; sprinkle with sifted cocoa, tap out excess (Step 1).

2 Meanwhile, place stout in a small saucepan; bring to a simmer. Simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes or until reduced to 1 cup. Add the chocolate; stir until melted. Cool to room temperature.

3 Beat butter and sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Fold in combined sifted flour, extra cocoa and the soda, alternating with stout mixture and vinegar. Spoon mixture into pan; smooth surface.

4 Bake cake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave cake in pan for 5 minutes before turning, top−side up, onto a wire rack over a tray.

5 Meanwhile, make stout syrup.

6 Pour two−thirds of the hot syrup over top and side of hot cake; cool. Serve cake with remaining syrup

(Step 2).

STOUT SYRUP

Stir ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat, without boiling, for 2 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer, without stirring, for 10 minutes or until thickened slightly. Remove from heat.